[quote style=”boxed”]Warrior Elite by Dick Couch, it depicts the undying will and never quit attitude of few young men who wanted to become Navy Seals. Every entrepreneur should read this book and try to apply the same energy and intensity to their startups.[/quote]
Taha Ahmed Khan is a technology research analyst, pattern miner and IT career guidance expert. He is the founder of DecisionJam.com, which helps starters and startups make smart and fast decisions. Prior to founding DecisionJam, he worked on his bootstrapped project, JobGraphs.com, which provides graphical analytical interpretation of various job trends to the software industry.
He holds a Master’s degree in computer applications and is trained in Muay Thai kickboxing.
What are you working on right now?
I am working on getting DecisionJam off the ground. Apart from that, I am working on a technology research and market intelligence think tank.
Where did the idea for DecisionJam come from?
My inability to decide whenever I have different options in front of me. I started to observe what makes us so confused when making decisions and how we can overcome this. I then developed a simple and straightforward system for making decisions, geared especially toward startups.
What does your typical day look like?
I don’t follow any strict timetable, everything is unconventional. I usually wake up at 10:30 AM, start my activities at 1:00 PM and typically continue until 5:30 AM.
How do you bring ideas to life?
- I browse hundreds of Websites on a topic
- I start to see patterns
- I take a walk
- After some time, Eureka! I get an idea
- I run to my desk and write the idea down in a small notepad
- I Google the idea
- If I don’t find anything similar on Google, I go to Go Daddy and check the availability of the domain name
- If somebody has taken that domain, I get very angry and visit the Website. If I find the Go Daddy page and not a Website, I say what the hell are they doing with such a good domain name 🙂
- When I find an available domain name, I create a logo
- I come back to my notepad and scribble more details on how the final product will look
- I work on finishing the idea, which usually takes much more time than expected
What’s one trend that really excites you?
How one man operation can become a threat to million dollar corporation. For example, Pinboard which is a one man operation and successfully competing against the big guns Delicious. Another example is tinyletter, which was recently acquired by MailChimp.
What was the worst job you ever had and what did you learn from it?
There are no worst jobs, only horrible bosses. 🙂 What I have realized is that if I am going to work so hard for others, why can’t I just work hard for myself?
If you were to start again, what would you do differently?
I would never offer my hard work for free.
As an entrepreneur, what is the one thing you do over and over and recommend everyone else do?
I work on unique ideas.
What is one business idea that you’re willing to give away to our readers?
Create a marketplace (similar to 99designs) that explains a startup in an infographic. For example, check beta.strawberryj.am which explains the entire startup in an infographic.
Tell us a secret.
Always keep on hand the ‘Plan B Negative;’ the plan that you need to execute when things not only go against your expectation, but go worse than expected.
What are your three favorite online tools and what do you love about them?
- TeuxDeux: Simplicity
- Thoughtboxes: Great tool for an idea man; it’s also a one man operation
- Google Apps: A gift for every entrepreneur
What is the one book that you recommend our community should read and why?
Warrior Elite by Dick Couch, it depicts the undying will and never quit attitude of few young men who wanted to become Navy Seals. Every entrepreneur should read this book and try to apply the same energy and intensity to their startups.
What’s on your playlist?
Start of a New Era on audiotool.
If you weren’t working on DecisionJam, what would you be doing?
Gathering technology market intelligence and mining patterns.
Three people we should follow on Twitter and why?
Sorry I don’t use Twitter often, so I can’t recommend anyone.
When was the last time you laughed out loud? What caused it?
While watching ‘Dude vs. Wild’ on YouTube.
Who is your hero?
Khalid bin Walid, 600 AD warrior and military tactician.
Which niche still needs a disruption?
Recruitment process and job boards haven’t changed much in the last 10 years. A lot of entrepreneurs are trying different things (branch-outs, etc.) but nothing disruptive has been done yet.
As an entrepreneur, which word do you most often mistype?
enterpreineiur 🙂
Connect:
DecisionJam Website: DecisionJam.com
Taha Ahmed Khan on Twitter: @tahaqadri
Mario Schulzke is the Founder of ideamensch, which he started a decade ago to learn from entrepreneurs and give them a platform for their ideas.